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Demon Stone Character Sketch: Zhai

Zhai is one of the most rare combinations of races found anywhere in the world of the Forgotten Realms. Her mother was Drow, a dark elf from the subterranean city of Menzoberranzan, while her father was a wood elf from the village of Cedarleaf.

Racial combinations that include dark elf almost never involve a loving union, but Zhai's story is atypical. Her father and mother met when he found her mother wounded and left for dead after one of the vicious Drow raids on the surface world. Zhai's father nursed her back to health, and despite their initial enmity, the pair came to know each other and find that they were much more alike than their heritage might indicate. They fell in love and had a child, Zhai.

Zhai's mother had never been convinced of the Drow cause of chaos and eventually became tolerated in Cedarleaf. Her nature changed so much that when the village was attacked by a band of marauding giants, Zhai's mother fought them to the death rather than let the town be destroyed.

Growing up without a mother was hard on Zhai. And her mixed blood made everything much harder. She was never trusted. While her father was loving and kind he didn't understand how to deal with her hard-hearted nature and the rage that came along with her Drow blood. The villagers and strangers she came into contact with didn't trust her because of her Drow heritage and kept her at arms length.

All of this has made Zhai independent, secretive, and sarcastic. It has also helped make her become an exceptional rogue. Being forced to sneak everywhere to avoid the accusing looks, Zhai quickly perfected her stealth skills. She developed her fighting and acrobatic skills by studying with a hermit monk. Her father sent Zhai to him to calm the rage that burned in her.

As Zhai grew, her exotic beauty, intelligence, and confidence scared the villagers -- especially the boys -- more than ever. In her late teens Zhai grew tired of constantly getting into trouble for beating the boys up for various real and imagined slights, so she struck out on her own. Years of self-sufficiency have made her tough. She has grown to understand that she will never be accepted so she doesn't try and uses sarcasm to hide the pain this alienation causes her.

Zhai's Role in the Party

Zhai is an excellent fighter when attacking enemies backs from the shadows. Like all rogues, she has been trained to find the vital points of most races and can kill even very tough enemies when attacking them from behind. Zhai is also the only hero of the trio who can jump and this gives her a real advantage in that she can almost never be cornered. Any time she is surrounded, she can simply jump over most enemies and escape to a better position. Zhai is very fast but is not as strong as Rannek, the fighter, and so is better suited for dealing death from the shadows than straight-ahead fighting.